


You Can't Scare Me

by honestgrins



Series: Until the Bitter End [9]
Category: The Vampire Diaries (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-22
Updated: 2017-01-23
Packaged: 2018-09-19 04:10:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,038
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9417908
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/honestgrins/pseuds/honestgrins
Summary: Prompt from brenda-blush: "I promised you a June Wedding." After Stefan finds a way to return to Caroline.





	1. You Can't Scare Me

Driving home, Caroline fought tears as she gripped the steering wheel. Violet was babbling away in the passenger seat; it was so painfully reminiscent of herself when she first turned, Caroline tried to smile if only to reassure the girl that coming home with her was the best option. The boarding house was empty anyway, and she needed Violet to get ahold of her cravings before setting her loose to live a real life.

She pulled up the driveway, hating that the house would be dark and empty like it had been for weeks. Staring at her ringless finger, Caroline's heart dropped further that her home would be empty forever. It had been a risk, throwing the ring back at Stefan. While she had to do it, knowing she couldn't feel beholden to the Ripper who treated her so poorly, all she wanted was for Stefan to come home to her.

Violet gasped, effectively distracting Caroline from her morbid thoughts. "What's wrong?"

"I'm already dead," she cried. "Is he here to rub it in?"

Parking in front of the boarding house, Caroline glanced up to find Stefan sitting on the front porch. She rolled her eyes, getting out of the car and encouraging Violet to follow. "Go inside, there are blood bags in the fridge. Drink one, slowly. I'll be in soon."

Violet stood frozen before Stefan, though he wasn't even looking at them. Lightly pushing her around him, Caroline glared down at her- at Stefan. "He won't hurt you anymore," she said comfortingly, though her voice was biting. "If you finish the blood before I get in, take a shower. You can take Damon's bed, he's got a great bathroom."

Scooting quickly around the man who killed her, the baby vampire disappeared into the house, leaving the former lovers behind.

"What are you doing here?" Caroline crossed her arms when Stefan didn't even glance up, his focus on his hands. "Stefan, answer me."

"I promised you a June wedding," he said blankly. His hands opened a bit, revealing her ring being passed between them like a bad omen.

Caroline shook her head. "You made me a lot of promises, Stefan," she snapped. "I'm tired of waiting for you to live up to them, and I shouldn't have to. That's why I gave back your ring."

"You keep doing that."

The hit lands like a stake to her chest, and Caroline bites her lip to keep from crying. Steeling herself, though, she found her resolve from earlier - there was a plan. "And I learned my lesson about accepting it. Don't worry," she snarled at his curious frown. "It won't happen again. You can have your fun serving Cade without me ruining the party." Feeling immensely tired, Caroline just sagged in on herself. "Just go away, Stefan."

"Ripper." His eyes flick up, something deeper than the sick amusement she had grown used to seeing in his expression. "Cade wanted the Ripper."

"You can't scare me, you're still Stefan," Caroline spat. "But you killed that girl upstairs because you knew it would hurt me. She's a lasting reminder that you choose this life over the one we were going to build together. That's not the man I was going to marry, and I'm not going to apologize for realizing that."

Though his emotional detachment was clear, Stefan seemed lost as he stared up toward Damon's window. "I could always kill her for good," he shrugged, like it was an obvious solution to a problem he didn't even care to fix. "The reminder doesn't have to last forever."

"Violet's going to live forever, Stefan, because you turned her," she explained sternly. Her nails pinched into her skin from how hard her arms clenched across her waist; she didn't know if her body wanted to punch him or hold him, just that she should resist the temptation. "And I'm going to take care of her, like a good friend once took care of me."

Stefan's impassive face didn't even flinch at the barb, and Caroline was done. Pushing her way past him, she had almost reached sanctuary when it occurred to her how strange it all was. "This is your house," she scoffed, whirling around. "You can't even come inside because you know what it will do to your precious Ripper-hood."

He raised a challenging eyebrow as he stood to face her, carefully standing beyond the porch.

"You're so scared to deal with the consequences of what you're doing, especially now that you've succeeded at pushing both me and Damon away," she said, reveling in the mean girl persona she used to be so proud of. "So yeah, I'm going to take care of Violet, but tell me, Stefan," she dared. She stepped closer, poking a finger into his chest. "Who's going to take care of you?"

"I've got the devil on my side," he shrugged easily, though Caroline saw his throat bob in consternation.

Her eyes hard, Caroline's smile was ice cold. "Then go to hell, and leave us alone."

She flashed inside, slamming the door shut before she showed another weakness. Tears streamed down her face; 'us' didn't include Stefan anymore, and that hurt her more than anything. Hearing telltale clinks and thumps of Violet digging in the refrigerator, however, Caroline gently wiped her eyes. "Hey, save me a blood bag," she called, ignoring how thick her voice sounded as she walked to the kitchen.

Missing her daughters fiercely, Caroline couldn't help but notice that Violet's wide-eyed expression was very similar to Josie and Lizzie's feigned innocence when they snuck into the cookie jar. Home had been an empty feeling without the girls and Stefan around; maybe this was what she needed to ease that longing. She wanted to care for Violet the way she wished someone had cared for her the day she woke up with old memories and new horrors, and if she had to atone for her part in Stefan's deal, then this was certainly a good place to start.


	2. Sublimate

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For jads1000, a terrible enabler! :) This was written as a continuation of You Can't Scare Me.

Violet awoke with a gasp, a sudden fear enveloping her as she couldn't place her surroundings. With her mind still muddy after the transition, it took her a few moments to recognize the strange bedroom Caroline had led her to. She was dead, with only a former pageant queen to protect her from herself. Perhaps she should have been more wary of the vampire welcoming her into her home, but Violet wasn't about to turn down blood bags and a fabulous bathroom.

A sound from said bathroom spooked her, though, and Violet clutched the covers to her chest as she waited for someone to kill her again. When no threat came, she slowly got out of bed and padded toward the opulent room where an unexpected sight surprised her. "Caroline?"

The older vampire was scrubbing the tiled floor on her hands and knees, literally using a toothbrush to get into the crevices. "I couldn't sleep," Caroline explained without looking back. Her movements were jerky, like she had too much adrenaline running through her veins. "Stress cleaning seemed like a good idea. I started with my bathroom, mostly because I hadn't touched Stefan's cabinet since- Well, anyway, there was so much dust that I had to pitch two bottles of hair gel that were all gunked up with the stuff. Of course, he has a thousand more options still in there, so I'm sure he won't be too mad when he comes- Um, yeah, so I finished my bathroom and thought about leaving you here with Damon's and needed to clean some more. I mean, it's disinfected, I have cleaned since he left. But still," her rambling finally broke as she shuddered dramatically. "Cooties."

Violet watched as Caroline kept scrubbing and rambling about her murderer's hair products, and the conversation she overheard earlier came flooding back. A bad feeling froze in her spine when the dots finally connected in horror.

* * *

When Violet didn't answer, Caroline turned to see the girl shifting uncomfortably. Her eyebrows immediately furrowed in concern. "What's wrong?" she asked, standing to get a better look at her expression. The girl didn't seem scared, but Caroline wanted to be sympathetic. "You're safe, I promise."

"I know," Violet answered easily, squeezing her middle with her crossed arms. Caroline waited for her to continue, giving an encouraging nod when she seemed unsure. "I just don't get it. You're so nice, and you're taking care of me. But, were you really going to marry the guy that killed me?"

Smiling sadly, Caroline removed the rubber gloves she had been wearing. "He's the one who took care of me when I first turned." Caroline's expression turned wistful as she remembered. "Vampires can grow detached from their humanity over time, but we also have the ability to flip that humanity off altogether. Stefan without his...it's just really bad and he's not like his normal self. My Stefan is kind, and heroic. He protected me when no one else did."

"He wasn't the one to turn you?"

"No," Caroline snorted. "I was killed by a real bitch, the same one who turned Stefan and his brother, Damon. She left me to wake up alone and scared in a hospital, not knowing what was happening or how to deal. There were...bad memories, and this incredible hunger I didn't know how to feed."

She paused, and Violet was desperate for details. "What happened?"

Caroline licked her lips, bracing herself. "Damon, whose room we're in, tried to kill me. I was a loose end, you see." Her voice dripped with self-deprecation, a hollow reminder of the girl she once was. Then, a small smile came to her face. "Stefan saved me, and he taught me how to be a vampire, a good one."

Her smile brightening, Caroline's hands landed triumphantly on her hips. "And now, I'm going to teach you."

She flashed away, and Violet was still a little disoriented with the open display of vampirism. Her new and improved senses could hear the blonde rummaging around downstairs, though she couldn't place the noise exactly. Quieter and faster than she could believe, Caroline returned suddenly; Violet jumped in surprise.

"Sorry," Caroline winced, holding up bottles of wine, pretzels, and ice cream in conciliation. "Vampire 101 starts with sublimation through food and booze."

Violet greedily reached for wine, though Caroline pulled it back with a raised finger in severity. "As a mother, I feel the need to warn you about the dangers of underage drinking." At Violet's kicked puppy look, however, Caroline felt her resolve weaken. "But, you also died today, so maybe you've earned a drink or two."

* * *

Stefan sat on the roof, listening in to the girls chattering away in Damon's bedroom. He really had left when Caroline sent him away, but he felt the most annoying tug to return to the boarding house after grabbing a blonde to eat.

He finally rid Damon of the damned necklace, only for the ring in his pocket to feel like a stone weighing him down. It was all her fault, and Stefan idly noted that he let her dig under his skin. Still, he couldn't help but frown when her laugh seemed dampened.

Absently, Stefan pulled the ring from his pocket, twisting it between his fingers as he contemplated Miss Forbes' plan. Maybe a bit naive and optimistic for the Ripper, but she always had been a better manipulator than they gave her credit. Just because he knew he was being manipulated, though, it didn't make him less susceptible to her efforts. Worse, he was tempted to test her limits in kind.

Distracting, that was the word for her.

Even as she giggled over snacks and wine with her new protege, Caroline had no idea she had already delayed his plans until morning. Stefan could very easily drop the ring and flash away, but there he sat.

Damon was right, the Ripper was satisfying Cade just fine with his killing sprees. He had certainly earned a night to pause and listen to the girl who threw his ring back in his face.

He was sure her harsh words and light laughter with someone who wasn't him would be out of his system by morning.


End file.
